WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — Police arrested five suspected johns and impounded a car in Washington Heights during a citywide street prostitution crackdown this month.
The men were arrested after they allegedly solicited a female undercover officer for sex. The woman was approached by four of the men on foot while another spoke to her from a car. The car was seized, police said.
The sting was part of what the NYPD dubbed “Operation Losing Proposition,” a four day effort in which both male and female officers posed as prostitutes. Nearly 200 alleged johns were arrested citywide.
The sting also resulted in the arrest of 10 suspected prostitutes.
Although police said the sting was launched in response to complaints in several neighborhoods, Deputy Inspector Barry Buzzetti, the commanding officer of the 34th Precinct, said street prostitution is not a major problem in Washington Heights.
“This, similar to our stolen property stings involving iPhones and iPads, is a maintenance issue designed to discourage those who would commit this type of crime,” he told DNAinfo.
The largest number of arrests occurred in Brownsville, Brooklyn, where 16 people were arrested. Fourteen suspects were arrested in Jackson Heights, Queens.
Police impounded 56 cars citywide.
